Time to trim: 5 ways to edit your life for more space and joy

If you’re feeling like life is too full, overstuffed or overwhelming, The Broad Place’s Jacqui Lewis thinks it could be time to stop adding and start editing your life instead. Here’s how.

We all want to be our ‘best selves’. Let’s be honest, no one is secretly hoping to live their ‘worst life’. In the quest for our better selves, we can sometimes become so occupied in the ‘getting’ that we forget to leave behind what is not working for us.

When we look at some areas of life, we’re great at removing something to have a different experience. For example, if we want to be healthier, we might edit out eating particular foods and add in others. If we want more room on our desk, we have to clean it up and remove things. If we want more space in our garage, we have to get rid of that which is no longer needed nor wanted. This kind of stuff is easier to grasp, and it’s a process most of us already know and are naturally good at. But usually the ability to edit and not hoard is applicable in only the small areas of life.

Usually, if we want more of a thing, something else has to go. So why are we are frequently taught to keep adding and adding? It’s becoming almost a frantic ‘more is more’ message, especially in the health and wellness space. Positive thinking has its benefits, but instead of attempting to add more and more in, what about considering editing out that which is not working and placing our attention on what we can remove?

Here are some thought starters and questions to ask yourself about five areas of your life that could potentially do with some editing:

Think about the way you approach your work, most specifically your attitude. Could you edit some habits? Maybe you tend to speak negatively about others and gossip when feeling nervous or threatened? Or perhaps you tell yourself how frightened you are of presenting in front of people, even though you seem to do it quite a lot. What would it look like if you edited the story to stop saying what doesn’t serve you?

We can only create the room for nourishing and inspiring friendships if there is actually space for them to fill. Is there a particular friendship in your life that feels unsustainable, unenjoyable, or makes you feel undervalued? Perhaps it’s time to let it go.

Is there behaviour you are bringing into your relationship that is well-past its used-by-date? Could it be removed and replaced with more refined and loving acts?

Is there sport or training you continue to do even though you don’t enjoy it? Perhaps there’s a style of training you would enjoy more. Are you telling yourself you ‘should’ do it over feeling inspired to do it? Is this story about ‘should’ helpful?

Try a room-by-room cleanse of the house where you remove, donate, recycle or sell everything that is too small, no longer loved, or actually broken. The results are immediate, plus the feeling of calm after a good edit of your house lasts far longer than the time it takes to do it.

By reducing or eliminating that in our lives which no longer serves us, we create space to experience the new. Who knows what positive change you could be inviting in?

An educator, author, and speaker on creativity and high grade living, Jacqui Lewis is the co-founder of The Broad Place, which teaches Integrated Meditation in Sydney, Melbourne, Byron Bay, Los Angeles and London. She also hosts immersive retreats globally and creates and executes workshops and talks centred around enhancing creativity, increasing clarity and expanding consciousness.

Disclaimer:
The information in this article is general information only and is not intended as financial, medical, health, nutritional, tax or other advice. It does not take into account any individual’s personal situation or needs. You should consider obtaining professional advice from a financial adviser and/or tax specialist, or medical or health practitioner, in relation to your own circumstances and before acting on this information.